H.F. No. 3951 Summary

• Amends Minnesota Statutes section 103A.204 to establish state policy that artificial recharge options be considered and implemented where groundwater levels are depleted and not naturally recovering with sufficient speed.

• Environmental Quality Board must submit a report to the legislature by February 1, 2021, on the feasibility of using artificial aquifer recharge to replenish groundwater in depleted aquifers.

• Report must include explanation of available artificial aquifer recharge techniques, strengths and weaknesses of each method, identification of candidate aquifers in the state, potential environmental effects, and any needed statutory or regulatory changes.

• Groundwater protection responsibilities remain distributed among six state agencies: Environmental Quality Board, Pollution Control Agency, Department of Agriculture, Board of Water and Soil Resources, Department of Natural Resources, and Department of Health.